Finding the Faith
by Archer of Ecclesia
Summary: She was back in town, and causing trouble again. Who else is going to stop her? (Fuffy if you tilt your head and squint.)


** A:N: I like Faith. Faith is cool. Faith is fun. Set around Season Five-ish. Like around when Dawn started her klepto-spree. Obviously more head-canon than anything.**

** Disclaimer: Does it look like I own this? NO!**

0-0-0

"Buffy! BUFFY! Oh, there you are!" Willow exclaimed, out of breath. Her red hair looked like a red catastrophe, tangled and damp.

"Did a frog crawl out of your shower drain? Need me to slay it?" Buffy teased, whipping up a stake and twirling it between her fingers.

Willow went paler than usual, but rolled her eyes and shrugged it off. "Stop teasing me. Ranidaphobia is very serious. Just like Dawnie's fear of being left alone and ignored, it's so weird but it's so real to them. And I'm rambling. Anyway, I was in the shower-"

"No-brainer," Buffy mumbled, going back to preparing her post-slaying snack.

"-and I was heading back to Tara's dorm, but I saw her! She was in the hallway, and, and, she was poking through someone's door. I think she almost saw me, but I ran because-"

_It'd be really nice if I could read minds again. Except with less overwhelming consequences. Euhhh, Giles and Mom_, Buffy shuddered. "I still have yet to hear a name."

"Faith!"

Her stake clattered to the floor. Her knuckles went white around the countertop and it might've broken if she wasn't in complete control.

She was barely handling being in control of the household. And slaying. And cleaning and cooking and shopping and everything else in the messy mesh that was a college student's and a Slayer's love child. "Will, I really don't have time to deal with a delinquent."

Dawn materialized beside Willow, her eyebrows scrunching together. Her eyes darted to the side before settling on a point behind Buffy. "delinquent? Who's a delinquent?"

"Remember? You were there when Faith broke in, and you were so scared you locked yourself in the bathroom, hyperventilated and passed out," Buffy said. Her nervous gaze settled back on Willow, Dawn slinking out before they noticed the somewhat panicky look on her face. "So she's back here. In Sunnydale."

Willow nodded. "Please don't think I'm crazy or, or, going blind."

Buffy shook her head, ponytail bouncing. She chewed on her lip, jumping when the microwave went off. She ignored it and started to pace. "No... It's not that I don't believe you, it's just that I don't want to believe you... I knew she'd end up around here again, but... It's just so soon."

The redhead nodded. "Just what I was thinking. Can I like, borrow your shower? And hairbrush, and hairdryer? And maybe some nice smell-y shampoo? I smell like sweat..."

Buffy nodded, still in a haze. She shook her head, ruffled her hair, and walked into the living room. She forgot about the half-baked pretzel pocket in the microwave and her growling stomach.

She really didn't feel like eating, as anti-Slayer as it sounded.

Faith wasn't good. Faith was bad. Faith was a surprise package with an impending prescription for lithium. And a psyche test.

And with her mom's very recent death and Dawn's trouble in school and the goddess from prima dona hell, she didn't have enough time to breathe. Someone with a bad temper and a sex drive larger than Ohio wasn't going to make things easier.

Buffy sank into the couch, letting out a long, heaving sigh. She wanted to scream, but she was too tired.

0-0-0

After a short nap, Buffy jolted awake to Willow shaking her lightly. She hoped it would have been just a bad dream, but Tara was standing behind Willow, arms crossed over her chest and bangs shielding her face. She was upset, and Willow was wide-eyed with fear.

Unless they were asking her for relationship help, something spooked them beyond belief.

_Vampire_ was her first thought. She jumped up, trying to locate a stake, but calmed down. The only vampires welcome in their house were either fixed or in Los Angeles. Vampires weren't an immediate concern. "What got in?"

Willow sighed, pulling back. The look on her face softened and Tara eased up. "Oh, thank goddess you're awake! You've been asleep since six. I was thinking that you had a heart attack, or, or, a stroke. Or that a vampire snuck in here and drained you," Willow babbled. Her rant was cut short when Buffy groaned, slumping back onto the couch.

"It's still dark. Lemme sleep. Take the bed and have sex for all I care," Buffy grumbled, pulling a pillow over her face.

The pillow was yanked out of her hand and chucked across the room. She noticed that it landed by Xander, who, for some reason, was in her house too. "Buffy," he said, trying to sound like he wasn't stressing, "You've been asleep for twenty-six hours. And fifteen minutes, give or take."

Buffy's eyebrows scrunched together beneath the pillow. She promptly sat up, still looking confused. A quick check of the clock said it was barely eight o'clock. Funny thing was, she was still tired.

For some reason, this was tied to something paranormal. "Ugh, Will? Who cursed me this time?"

Tara seated herself on the table, pressing her hand to Buffy's forehead. "I-it wasn't a curse. No malicious energy. You've just been exhausted, is all. And you don't feel hot, so I don't think you're sick or anything."

_Faith_.

Buffy yawned. "Xander, you're watching Dawn. Willow, Tara, we've-" _yawn_, "-got a Slayer to catch."

"S-Slayer? Are we-we talking about," Tara paused, turning to Willow. "The body-swap girl?"

Willow bit her lip, then nodded. "Don't worry. If she's mean to you again, I'll sacrifice her to Glory," Willow smirked.

Buffy scrunched her eyes together, staring at Willow. "Is there something I'm missing out on, or is Tara mad?"

Tara crossed her arms again, staring at the floor. "We should've told you earlier. But Faith and Willow and I had a bit of a run-in at the Bronze, and-and she was kinda mean to me. Like, teasing me, a-about Willow. A-and my stutter."

"Sounds like Faith," Buffy mumbled. She sat up, popping her back. "I'm hungry. Someone order pizza and we'll discuss strategy."

0-0-0

"This is just horrible!" Willow exclaimed from the living room.

Buffy dropped her protein shake and ran into the darkening room, ready to shove Faith through the window. "What? What is it?"

"This isn't the vegetarian," she whined. She stared at Buffy, then blushed. "I realize that this isn't the end of the world, but going all-natural helps increase wicca concentration powers. Or so I've read."

Tara sat beside Willow, whispering something into her ear. Willow blushed and began to pick off the pepperonis and plop them into the box. "Anyway... we've been working with this map for a while. Marking her usual hangouts, and pleases she'd probably be at. You know, the stripper's bar and the like."

Buffy sat beside the wiccans, pulling the table closer. A crude map of Sunnydale was drawn on a whiteboard. Marked were the areas Faith and her kind would be associated with; sleazing around the trashy downtown hotel; dry-humping some dude at the Bronze; hiding in the ruins of Sunnydale High if she didn't have the money for a room.

Also highlighted in red Dry-Erase were points Faith knew about. They included the Summers' house and where the Mayor boarded her. "We doubt she'll drift around any of these places, but there's no telling with her. So, we were thinking, it'd be smart if you stayed with someone else tonight. There's always Spike's crypt. Or our place. Maybe Xander's."

"No. We're staying here. Dawn will stay over at Giles'-"

"Aw, what?!" a high-pitched voice complained from the top of the stairs.

"-And we'll stay here. This'll be the easiest place to catch her and turn her over."

0-0-0

Dawn came downstairs after night had finally fell, bag packed and eyes rolling. She tried arguing with her sister about how unfair it all was, but she was cut short.

If she wanted to help, the best thing she could do was take the laptop Willow had set up for her and keep an eye on it.

Willow, talented as she was, easily hacked into security cameras across the state of California. One screen was divided into six panels, each including a store she robbed. There were three others like it. Another page showed the five cameras angled in the Bronze.

It wouldn't be easy to locate someone in a typical Bronze night. Bodies milled about on the bluish-gray screen, mingling on the dance floor. But it wouldn't be hard to find Faith, dancing erratically and rubbing her genitalia against anything that moved.

"Thanks for letting me borrow this, Will," Dawn smiled. "I'm finally a Scooby!"

"Just don't break it. Or spill anything on it. Or get crumbs between the keys."

Tara and Willow smiled, waving to Dawn as she stepped into Xander's car. She was staring intently at the screen. Bound to be a grade-A researcher in time.

A map torn from an atlas sat on the table, marked up with red pen. Witchcraft ingredients lined the waterstained edges, choking the room with a cloying scent.

It was just a simple locator spell. It wouldn't take long, but Buffy was busy pacing again. She was awaiting for Dawn's call, in case the spell misfired. She thought briefly about finding Spike, since he had been acting funny after the body-swap, but he was probably put off by the girl.

Everyone else was, sane or not.

The yellow light floated out of the page in the atlas and hovered around. It flickered and flitted before dying out. "Damn. She's got something block it. Figures."

Nothing could be simple, of course.

Luckily, Buffy had grown paranoid. She threw on her jacket the moment she woke up. She had stretched and thrown a thing of mace in her pocket, just in case. "Well, girls, I guess it's time to do it the good, old fashioned way."

Willow rose, rolling up the map. "And that way would be?"

"Hunting and slaying."

"Not slaying, as in, sticking a stake through her chest and killing her. Right?" Tara asked, clearing away the mess of wicca ingredients.

Buffy opened the front door and walked out, intentionally leaving it open. The witches followed her. "You know what, if I accidentally punched a hole through her chest, I don't think I'd mind."

Tara was suddenly in front of her, crossing her arms. "Y-y-you know, t-that's a really s-shitty thing to say. Y-you're being a bit harsh, don't you think?"

The Slayer sighed, walking around Tara and heading into town. "I guess. I'm hitting Bronze. You all, go wherever."

"Buffy, you're angry! Please, calm down! We all make mistakes, but some are bigger than others! You pushed her into a coma, for hell's sake!" Willow hollered, but Buffy had long since gone deaf.

0-0-0

She didn't remember much.

When she woke up from her haze, she was straddling someone. The girl's face had long since grown purple from bruises. And loss of air. She was crushing her windpipe.

"Hey! Hey! Hey!" someone shouted, and before she knew it, someone threw her off. "Chill out, you rowdy lil' rascal!"

Buffy swung again, slamming her fist into something hard. The man who tried to break up the catfight went staggering back, tripping over a garbage bag and landing in a dumpster.

She paused, rubbing her throbbing fist. "You know now?"

"No," the girl whined.

0-0-0

When she woke up, her head was spinning and she was tethered to the bed. There were blurry figures above her, looking at her and shaking their heads.

"W-we were wrong about the spell thing," a voice said beside her ear. "The magic used was very discreet, a-and it didn't emerge until it was triggered by strong emotion. A-and that emotion made you r-react like you were insane. We're sorry."

"Just find her," Buffy croaked, her voice raw. "Have you set the counterspell yet?"

"Yeah," Willow said, the rush of red hair flooding Buffy's bleary vision. "And I hate to say this, but you might be sitting this one out."

Buffy groaned, her head flopping against the pillows. She was on her uncomfortable bed in the blinding sunlight. She squinted and looked around, straining her eyes to focus. The room was empty, other than her and Willow. Tara had left, she supposed.

For a while, Willow was quiet. She sat at the foot of the bed, flipping through a book. She looked up occasionally and smiled.

Outside, the sun began to set. Buffy wondered how long she had been out. And who found her pummeling that poor girl. And _why_ she was pummeling that poor girl.

She groaned when she looked down at her hands. She hadn't been exactly focused, and she threw some careless hits. Bruises bloomed along her knuckles, aching when she flexed her hands.

Faith was still out there, and Buffy was sitting around like a vampire in a crypt. "Can I go now?"

"No," Willow promptly scolded. "We'll send a group of crazy people in your place. I promise. But you're too tired to go hunting her down just yet. If she doesn't pop up on the cameras soon, we can try the spell again and you can go then."

After a few boring hours worth of sitting in bed and not being allowed to move, Buffy was freed from the straps. She almost throttled Willow and Xander (it had been their idea), but thought better of it.

It was time to gather up a search party and shake her out of her hiding place. After dinner, of course.

0-0-0

Buffy ended up wrangling her little Scoobies into an anxious mess after dark.

Xander would still be babysitting Dawn, but everyone else was ready to find Faith and knock her out. Buffy was feeling loads better after the curse had been removed, but she was still pissed. Faith wasn't welcome in Sunnydale anymore.

Bye-bye, end of story.

"So, everyone remember rules?" She crossed her arms and stood in front of the door.

Anya scrunched her nose up, then raised her hand, bouncing.

"Yes, Anya?" _Someone still needs work on their being human skills_.

"We can't kill her unless there's no witnesses?" the ex-demon offered in her perky manner.

Willow scoffed. "Or unless she tries to kill you first."

"I thought Buffy was the boss of these missions," Anya stated.

"She is, but she's still thinking a little funny," the witch whispered.

Buffy opened the door and slammed it behind her, leaving the witches and the demon inside. She wasn't in the mood to put up with moral.

Faith needed to leave and that was that.

The Bronze was teeming with people, as usual. It was a band night, and a winding, slow song played in the background. Wasn't really anything the rogue Slayer would move to, but this was her normal haunt. If she wasn't on the dance floor, then she was getting drunk off her ass.

Or, at least, trying. Slayer metabolism burned through alcohol like it was sugar.

Buffy moved through the sea of milling bodies, past the crowded pool tables and over to the bar. A young bartender was working tonight, trying to keep up with the throngs of younger people.

She sat at a raised seat, twirling around and watching the crowd. The beat had picked up to a technological, metallic sound, and drunken morons were losing all abandon.

No Faith.

Buffy sighed, leaving after the song ended. If she wasn't at the Bronze, she was going to be impossible to find.

The motel was virtually empty, other than the rats. And a cockroach that worked at the reception.

Dawn called Buffy's cell a little after two in the morning, long after she should have been in bed. Buffy answered with a sharp tone, telling her to get her tiny ass to bed.

"Buffy, she's at the college. Where Willow first saw her? Duh, you all should've been there before anything. I forget what that's called, but I saw it on almost every t.v. show. She's been in the library for about ten minutes, and I don't think she's going anywhere anytime soon. She sorta got herself locked in."

"Dawn, Dawn. When will you ever learn?" Buffy asked, leaving the cemetery she was patrolling. "What Faith wants, Faith gets. She'll bust out before anything. And why in the hell is she reading? Last time I checked, she was thrown out of school before she could finish elementary."

There was a shuffling noise on the other end. "I don't know, but it's one big book."

"Thanks for your help, Dawnie. Now get to bed."

"Geez, alright. Bye."

Dawn hung up before Buffy could respond. She sighed, starting the long trek towards Sunnydale campus.

Everything was unusually quiet as she moved towards the large library. No vampires to ambush her, no thugs to get beaten up.

It seemed the world was smart in hiding.

Buffy found a window she could jump to and get in on the western side. It was cracked slightly, and a good jump would get her in.

She sighed, scrambled up the brick building, and pulled the pane open before she fell to the ground. She hardly fit through, but she was still careful to not make any noise.

The rows of the history section loomed before her. It took her a moment to get her bearings - she was hardly ever in the library - but she eventually figured out where the demonology section was. It was tiny, and more like mythology than anything, but the many supernatural people attracted to the area knew what was real and what wasn't.

Faith sat with her back against the shelf, a huge tome in her lap. Dawn was right about her not moving anytime soon. Her snores were light and soft, but definitely there.

For the first time since ever, Faith looked trashed. Her hair was greasy, her make-up was cheap. Her clothes were dirtied and torn. Clearly taken from a secondhand store. There were bags under her eyes and bruises spotting her collarbone and face. And from the looks of things, she had been running since she slipped out of their grasp again.

"Serves you right," Buffy mumbled.

The Slayer rose, about to slip off and call Willow. Or Spike. Or anyone who could sit on the girl until police arrived. She paused when Faith started whimpering.

She was stuck for a moment, trying to figure out what she was supposed to do. Buffy admitted defeat and pulled the book off her lap, gently and slowly.

It wasn't old, but it was paranormal. It was bound by leather and had yellowing pages, but that was just for decoration. The publishing information said it was printed three years ago.

Buffy skimmed the pages that were open. It was about a demon that caused nightmares by poisoning the victim. She closed the book and stared at the cover. _Nightmare_, it read, _How Are Thou Art Caused_?

Faith whined again, starting to twist around. She began to pant, and Buffy sucked in a breath, thinking she was about to wake. The Slayer started to mumble to herself.

"N..noo. Stop," she whispered, hardly audible. "Don'urt 'er."

Buffy stared down at the thick tome, then back at Faith. The girl looked like she hadn't slept in ages. She touched the pocket her phone was in, about to pull it out.

She stopped after a moment, looking between the girl and the book again. The girl stopped thrashing, letting out a small whimper. "You know... you could've taken me in by now..."

"You need some rest," Buffy whispered. "You're gone by morning or I'm taking you in."

"I can't sleep," Faith responded, finally opening her eyes. "You think that I wouldn't need anymore rest, after an eight-month coma. But I'm so tired."

Buffy sat back, staring at the brunette. "That's your problem."

"It's your's too. We're connected, you know. Somehow," she protested, trying to get up.

"You're paying for what you did. I don't care what's haunting you. If it's the Mayor, or tormenting Tara, or Willow, I really don't care," Buffy said through gritted teeth. "I care about you, Faith. You're like some sort of screwed up sister to me. But for now, you need to leave. Alright?"

Faith nodded. "Gone by morning."

"Gone by morning," Buffy confirmed.

She looked down, and returned the book to Faith. "Page one-eighty-one. Guilt and stress-casued nightmares. I get them too."

Buffy leaned forward and placed a kiss on Faith's head before running off.

Behind her, she heard Faith swear and the book slam against the shelves.

0-0-0

By morning, everything was calm.

Faith was gone. Just like she promised. If Dawn saw anything, she didn't mention it.

As the morning sun woke her, Buffy squinted into the light. She stretched, showered, and ate. The day suddenly seemed so mundane. Her Faith was gone, and the world seemed bland again. "Bored now," she mumbled.

0-0-0

**A:N: I've been wanting to write a Fuffy friendship/family type thing for a while. Don't get me wrong, they're cute as a couple (I'm not sure about Buffy, but Faith screws anything that moves), but they're sweet like this too.**

** Reviews make the world go round.**


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